Comedy in Nollywood: Q &A With A Pioneer Filmmaker

By Carl Unegbu, ComedyBeat | Filmmaking today stands on three main pillars: First, there?s the world-famous Hollywood; then there is India?s Bollywood and then there?s Nigeria?s Nollywood. Presently, the comedy genre is rising at a fast clip in Nollywood and Oliver Mbamara, a prolific screenwriter and filmmaker is one of its foremost pioneers. Mbamara, a Nigerian-born lawyer based in America is blazing a hot trail both in creating Nollywood sitcoms and movies and in bringing them to audiences both in Africa and across the Atlantic. His latest work, a dramedy called ?Cultures?, a 17-episode TV series premiered to a raucous reception this past May at a special screening at New York?s Museum of Modern Art (MoMA).

ComedyBeat talks to the trailblazing filmmaker about his work and the future outlook for comedy in Nollywood:

How long have you been a writer and producer of comedy films and what made you decide to embark on that career path?

Oliver Mbamara: I have been writing since my college days back in Nigeria when I belonged in a theater troupe that toured the country presenting plays and music drama. I found it very satisfying to entertain people and make them laugh. It was very natural for me. As time went on this desire grew and I eventually started writing and producing films.

I suppose you consider yourself a Nollywood filmmaker? In what markets are Nollywood films sold?

Oliver Mbamara: The new age Nigerian independent film industry which is popularly known as ?Nollywood? is still developing and undergoing a dynamic evolution. This makes it rather difficult to use the term ?Nollywood? loosely since we are still defining the industry in line with the variety and category of filmmakers and content arising out of the industry.

As for me, I am an independent filmmaker of African origin dwelling on African and immigrant themed stories.

In terms of where Nollywood films are sold, there are no boundaries yet as the audience keeps growing. But marketers are continuing to explore new ways of marketing these films in today?s challenging environment where store sales and theater showings are hugely impacted by the problems of free internet broadcasting and technology for movie piracy.
But, African movies are primarily being sold in African stores across many cities. A few online stores like www.NollywoodMovies.com are also springing up to sell these movies.

How big is the comedy genre in the Nollywood?

Oliver Mbamara: The comedy genre in Nollywood is quite big and is quickly outgrowing other genres. Initially, people were drawn to Nollywood films because of the casual but unique stories they offered. But over time, the storylines of most of the other genres became somewhat repetitive and less exciting unlike in comedy where the antics are always fresh and rather endless. I think that in the end people tend to be drawn to light-hearted entertainment.

How many movies have you made so far?

Oliver Mbamara: At least six feature films, two shorts films, and of course 17 episodes of the TV series ? Cultures.

Now tell me about your latest work ?Cultures?. What is the series all about? And how did it all come about?

Oliver Mbamara: Cultures is a new TV comedy-drama series featuring the veteran comedian Chika Okpala (a.k.a: Chief Zebrudaya, alias 4:30). Okpala plays an African chief named Anabaronye who brings a wife to his nephew, Ozobio, in the U.S. because the nephew had not visited his Nigerian homeland since traveling abroad a long time ago. But Chief Anabaronye arrives in the U.S. only to discover that Ozobio is already engaged to a Chinese-American. He then takes matters into his own hands to try to make things ?right.? What then ensues is a catalyst of humorous dramatic conflicts fuelled by differences in ego, values and cultures. More on Cultures is available at www.CulturesTVseries.com .

With respect to how Cultures came about, the short answer is that I have always felt a sense of duty to both people at home and those abroad to tell the stories of the serious challenges and cultural conflicts faced by immigrants in the Diaspora. The desire to share these stories in a lighter-mood was a major factor in the making of Cultures, just as with most of my other works/films.

Is there a message in ?Cultures?? Can someone who?s not a member of the African Diaspora appreciate the movie?

Oliver Mbamara: The core message in Cultures is to try to get people to understand that there is often a cultural explanation for what may at times seem odd in the behavior and attitudes of immigrants. And this is an issue that seems to cut across all immigrant groups and so it is not limited to just members of the African Diaspora.

Where was the movie made? And what was your biggest challenge in making the movie?

Oliver Mbamara: Cultures was produced in the United States although we had to fly in some seasoned veteran actors like Chika Okpala and Frederick Nnorom, from Nigeria to play some of the more culturally based roles. The biggest challenge in making the TV series was the lack of adequate funding.

I and my co-producer Felix Nnorom are still hoping to get sponsors to come aboard and support us to continue telling the story beyond the episodes we have so far.

How are you distributing the movie?

Oliver Mbamara: We are looking forward to getting some television or cable sponsorship and programming. In the meantime because of the high demand from fans and audience to see the series, we have started releasing the first few episodes on DVD as pilots for the remaining episodes which are already complete and ready to go. We recently had a premiere of some initial episodes of Cultures which will be on DVD soon at www.NollywoodMovies.com

We all know that piracy is a big problem for filmmakers and other creative folks. How big a problem is piracy for Nollywood films?

Oliver Mbamara: Piracy is the biggest problem yet for Nollywood films and it really is one that is threatening the very fabric of the industry. Because most Nollywood filmmakers are independent proprietors who finance their projects from their own savings and other sources, piracy tends to hit them pretty hard by denying them the remuneration they need to improve the quality of their films and to produce more films or even to pay the actors working for them. Our hope is that until the piracy problem is somehow brought under control, those filmmakers who love the art will somehow manage to sustain themselves and not be discouraged from generating more content. But right now, it is tough.

Can you describe the nature of the piracy problem in Nollywood and what is the film industry doing about the problem?

Oliver Mbamara: The extent of the piracy problem is so huge that it cannot be addressed in a single interview. But suffice it so say that film industries are working on the problem- as they should. For example, African filmmakers in the United States are forming a guild that would, among other things, battle piracy and improve the industry.

As it happens, modern technology and tools with which to pirate a movie have become commonly available and so movie pirates are now able to stream movies on the internet for free and some of them now even broadcast movies on TV without authorization. But until movie pirates realize that living off another person?s labor and investment is both morally and legally wrong, filmmakers just have to unite and come up with effective means of dealing with the challenge. Movie pirates won?t be going away on their own any time soon.

Is Nollywood collaborating with other film industries (like Hollywood & Bollywood) in trying to deal with the piracy problem? If so, how?

Oliver Mbamara: At the moment, there is no direct collaboration yet but the problem of piracy cuts across the board and all film industries are working on it.

Is there anything about African comedy that sets it apart from, say, American comedy or even oriental comedy from India and such places?

Oliver Mbamara: African comedy is usually woven around African traditional mannerisms and ways of life. That is something unique to Africa just as other industries also add a flavor of their cultural background in their stories.

What is the future outlook for comedy movies in Nollywood?

Oliver Mbamara: The future is bright. Comedy movies have come to stay and the genre will continue to grow because of the freshness of the content when compared to other genres.

Where do you see yourself as a filmmaker in five years? time?

Oliver Mbamara: Telling more of our stories in a more improved way!

Source: http://comedybeat.com/2012/07/24/comedy-in-nollywood-q-a-with-a-pioneer-filmmaker/

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